Le Carré's 'Little Drummer Girl' to complete Modern Classics backlist

Penguin this month completes publication of John le Carré’s 21-strong backlist as Penguin Modern Classics, with The Little Drummer Girl, out on 27th September.

The 21 titles represent the author's complete backlist with the exclusion only of recent books Pigeon Tunnel and Legacy of Spies, both published by Penguin General.

Penguin said le Carré will then become the living author with the greatest number of works awarded the Classic status, with the presence of so many of his novels on the Penguin Modern Classics list acknowledging him "not just as a writer for today but for all time".

A story of love and loyalty set against a backdrop of conflict in the Middle East, The Little Drummer Girl is also going to be the subject of a major six-part BBC TV adaptation this October, starring Alexander Skarsgård and Florence Pugh, and produced by the same team behind the adaptation of The Night Manager.

In full, Penguin Modern Classics' 21-strong series of le Carré’ novels will comprise: Call for the Dead; A Murder of Quality; The Spy Who Came in from the Cold; The Looking Glass War; A Small Town in Germany; The Naïve and Sentimental Lover; Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy; The Honourable Schoolboy; Smiley’s People; The Little Drummer Girl; A Perfect Spy; The Russia House; The Secret Pilgrim; The Night Manager; Our Game; Tailor of Panama; Single & Single; The Constant Gardener; Absolute Friends; The Mission Song and A Most Wanted Man.

Helen Conford, publishing director for Penguin Press, said: "John le Carré is one of the most important writers of our generation. For 21 of his novels to be published as Penguin Modern Classics is an acknowledgement not only of his immense literary achievement and the timeless quality of his work, but a well-deserved recognition of his significance as a writer who holds a mirror up to society and encourages us to question the world around us."